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Tuesday, November 13, 2012

It's been awhile since I have had a good DIY storage fest around here. Budget saving, custom, hands on, made amazing storage eye candy.

There are times I hear concerns that organizing is so expensive. Sure it is, if you let it be. And I have been a sucker for expensive storage from time to time, but the act of organizing is FREE and storage can be crafted and made by hand to save boatloads of dollars! Sweetness right?

So, I thought I would pop some inspiration your way, of great yet PRETTY storage that has been or could be DIY'd.

Let's start out easy shall we? Got a box? How about some decorative scrapbook or wrapping paper? Even fabric will do. Pair your paper or fabric with some spray adhesive and you have custom storage that will blow your mind!

Jars are another item that are a dime a dozen. Baby food and mason jars are amongst the most popular, so it should be no surprise that they have been turned into fantastic, inexpensive storage all over the blogosphere.

Paint always makes a room look fresh and new, so imagine what it does to jars!

And never forget to reuse awesome containers. When you purchase something and it runs out, always look at the container it came in as a potential piece of free storage! Sometimes some simple paper will dress it up, sometimes, you don't need to do anything at all...

I used an old diaper box and some rope to create a storage box... my only issues is that the rope ended up adding up, and it was not so cheap. Although, I then used colorful duct tape on another diaper box, and it turned out so cool. When you have 8 month old twins, you have no shortage of diaper boxes.

Thank you for all that you d and your wonderful ideas and decorating tips. I have been looking in on your blog for a few months and am just amazed at how creative you are. If I am stuck on a organizing idea, I look to your blog. :)

Thanks for posting this! I actually think it's a neat idea to "swap" items with friends and family (if they agree, of course) to see if they have things they're no longer using that may be helpful to you (and vica versa) for storage! We did this recently with an old box my FIL had created back in the 60's, to store small things in our office cove.

Like the map covered boxes. I just saw on Pinterest a cereal box covered in pretty paper and cut into the shape of magazine holders - great idea! My personal fave is pen pots from old tin cans, I used the woolly sleeves of a jumper to cover mine - http://tidyawaytoday.wordpress.com/2012/06/05/cheap-and-creative-storage-solutions-top-5/

I have been making magazine holders for my recently sorted through hoard of crafting mags. Just using 1kg cereal boxes. They turn out the same size as bought ones and are a tiny bit less sturdy until you fill them with mags. So cheap and easy though :-)

Thank you for this! Your blog has inspired me to go on a whole house organizing spree, and I basically have no budget. I'm surprised what I've been able to come up just from what's hanging around already. You've been me tons more great and doable ideas. This is a post I'll be referring to again. You made my afternoon!

I don't know if you get them in the US but here in Australia we get postal boxes. They are perfect for medium sized things (kids toys, sewing patterns, papers). I have been meaning to cover some myself but wasn't sure what to use to put the fabric on with. Now I know - spray adhesive. Thank you!

love the jars! I recently came across a cool recipe for tinted mason jars. You put some food coloring in modge podge and then pour it in the jars. Swish it around to coat the inside and then dump out excess. Bake in a 380 degree oven until the color is clear and there you have it :)

Love these ideas. Now I'm jealous of those of you with kids still in diapers! For her birthday my gift to my mom was a promise to help her organize her 60 years worth of unfiled papers (EEEEK! Jen HELP ME!!!) My mom is all about the pretty and I'd love to cover some diaper boxes in pretty fabric to make organizing more fun for her.

I have actually been contact papering boxes to use for my storage boxes I'm surprised more people don't talk about using contact paper instead of fabric or scrapbook paper. I've found cute ones at Marshall's and even at Dollar Tree. I wrote about it here: http://afromartha.com/make-your-own-storage-boxes/

This round up is just full of inspiration! I'm such a huge huge fan of repurposing jars and cans. I think I learned that from my daddy - he always used old coffee cans to store things like screws, nails- etc in his workshop in the garage. :)

Great ideas. I love all of them, especially the crates, cut in half. Could you give me an idea of how to stick them to the wall? I'd very much appreciate your advice since I have a few crates here that need New use.Cheers from Germany,FrauSchmitt

I have been receiving 100+ Anonymous spam comments/day which I was required to review and moderate, so I turned off anonymous commenting temporarily to see if that helps with inbox overload. Sorry that it also impacted you? It should still allow for you to use your name/url so I will look into it.

I've never thought of the customization ideas. So far I have re-used empty tins and jars as it is, but having seen you decorating them in your own way, it really does make a difference in the entire storage and organizing concept. The different storage containers can all be customized using the same decorative paper or sheet to complement each other and match your furniture and decor. Then, they can be placed on the cabinets to make up one whole set without looking awkward or out of place. I especially like the baby food jars idea because they are easily available if you have young ones at home, but often get disposed off so easily because sometimes we overlook its alternative purpose as a storage container. Next is the PVC tubes. I have never had the idea that they can be of so much use! However, you have to be really careful when cutting them to the desired lengths. The edges tend to be sharp and thorny so ensure they are carefully smoothened to avoid unnecessary injuries.

You can use anything from Mod Podge to spray adhesive to double stick tape. The thicker the paper, the better the results. I typically only wrap boxes in decorative papers if they won't receive a lot of wear and tear. Boxes that receive that extra attention do better when wrapped in fabrics or adhesive drawer liner/contact paper.

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